“A swordsman is not a karate man with a stick!”
This quote is frequently heard from swordsman Philip Scudieri. Scudieri sensei (teacher) is the founder of San Sai Ryu Kenjutsukai and the owner of the Delaware Budokan.
In a seminar this fall
at Ellis County Martial Arts, (Ennis, Texas, USA) Scudieri sensei taught
many techniques of kenjutsu. Kenjutsu, the art of the sword, was practiced
by the samurai and has been preserved in these modern times. Mr.
Richard Ray, owner of Ellis County Martial Arts and personal student of
Scudieri, hosted this seminar in Texas.
“ I met Scudieri sensei years ago when I was a police officer. Even though I moved many times before settling in Texas, I kept in contact with sensei. How fortunate we are that he is willing to travel over a thousand miles to share this exquisite art with us.”
People who practice kenjutsu come from all walks of life – computer programmers, police officers, housewives, college students, doctors, truck drivers, professional bodyguards – and the list goes on. But they all have one thing in common; a deep desire for intense personal development not found in other martial arts.
“The first time you see
a kenjutsu class, it can appear a bit comical,” admits Mr. Ray. “You
see people dressed in ‘costumes’ from hundreds of years ago, carrying ancient
weapons. It’s easy to laugh – until you hear the distinct hiss of
a sword leaving the scabbard. Until you hear the crash of one bokken
against another, and you realize that even a wooden sword can inflict a
great deal of damage if you lose concentration. This absolute focus
and purity of technique is what makes swordsmen different.”
“A swordsman is not a
karate man with a stick” – what does that mean? In feudal Japan where
much of kenjutsu was developed, the term for swordsman was “heihojin” or
strategist. The sword may have been the tool, but the lesson was
in specific strategies for winning. These strategies could be learned
with other weapons or even empty hands; however, practicing with a thirty-inch
razor blade eliminates all distractions and unnecessary movements.
The focus of this seminar
was irimi ho, or entering body strategy. While Scudieri sensei taught
many waza to illustrate irimi ho, the most popular was yamabiki no ken,
“the mountain hears the echo of the sword”.
The seminar ended Mr.
Ray presenting Scudieri with a gift from the dojo – a hand made wooden
sword case inlaid with the mon of the San Sai Ryu, and a deeper appreciation
for all students of kenjutsu, the art of the sword.
